Oops.

September slipped away without a post. Not sure how that happened. So to update you a little --
*We went to Justin and Shelli's wedding, which was fabulous and exhausting. It was good to be with old friends. And how did we get so old anyway? More people need to get married so that we can all get together more often.
*School has been somewhat all-consuming. I'm sitting in the classroom right now, waiting for class to get started. I briefed my first case, which was terrifying, and last week I had my first quiz. Hoping to get the (cross my fingers) good results back this week. There is a lot of reading and learning going on. And you can ask me all about intent and causation and I'll have some things to tell you. Along with Torts, Contracts and Crimes. Did you know that the burden of proof of "Beyond a Reasonable Doubt" is only applicable to criminal cases? I did not. Anyway, I'm working on outlining each class (sounds fun, right?) and keeping up with reading and briefs. And it seems never-ending.
*I went to Women's Retreat with my mom and sister, and was totally blessed.
*I came back home to a husband who loves me and shows it to me in a million ways and realized again how blessed I am to have him as my partner and teammate.
*Fall weather is (finally) here. I'm enjoying cooler temperatures and sweaters.
*And of course, there can't be fall weather without me getting nervous about winter, so that's going on too.
*I'm really enjoying being near my family. It's nice that it doesn't have to be a big deal to go over to my mom's house for supper or anything else, for that matter.
*We love our house. And are learning the joys and trials of homeownership. (Cutting down trees, fixing wet basements, decorating, etc.)
*I wrote two grants for work, and am working on a third.
*Patient numbers are steadily going up!

Those are the highlights I guess. I feel very busy, and ready for a homeleave, unfortunately those don't seem to occur outside of boarding academy. I'm feeling a little under the weather today, but it might just be allergies. I don't have time to be sick, so praying that will just go away. And my teacher is here now, so I'm going to go pay attention to class.

Pictures from my mom's 60th birthday party.

Back in November we had a joint birthday party for my mom and my sister. They both had milestone birthdays this year - 30 and 60. So on a two day trip to Nashville I spent a day doing whatever my mom wanted. We watched some Christian female comedian on DVD while doing some crafts together - making beaded bookmarks, then met Christa for lunch and did some shopping. That evening we had a special dinner with friends. It was a good time. Here are some highlights...

Love at first listen

I'm really loving Sara Groves' remake of Jars of Clay's Flood. I bought the whole $30 package that came with extra downloads, a mug, free trade coffee and an autograph. And I think Flood was worth it. Also, my favorite song on the new album, Like a Lake. I think it's about being open even after we've been hurt. My favorite lyric from the song

"Everything in me is tightening,
Curling in around this ache
I will lay my heart wide open
Like the surface of a lake

Wide open a lake."

It's beautiful and a little sad.

I'm also enjoying her jazzy remix of her own version of When the Saints.

Also today, I'm really glad to be a literature teacher, for the simple fact that I get to read the literature too. We read part of Walden today. Parts of me think that Thoreau is totally ridiculous, unrealistic and pompous. But parts of me really love him and I smile when I read it.

My favorite quotes from Walden for today.

"For a man is rich in proportion to the number of things which he can afford to let alone."

"I have frequently seen a poet withdraw, having enjoyed the most valuable part of a farm, while the crusty farmer supposed that he had got a few wild apples only."

"I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived."

"I would drink deeper; fish in the sky, whose bottom is pebbly with stars."

Otherwise, the last month has been very difficult at work. I don't really want to go into it or talk about it anymore. Suffice to say that at the end of many days, I come home, look at Michael, and think that he's the only person left in Pennsylvania who I like. (This is not altogether true, but you all know I'm perhaps prone to exaggeration, and it definitely feels that way some days.) So I'm looking forward to Thanksgiving break, but not the parent-teacher conferences that come before it. But if I can get through that without being screamed at (remember last year?), I think I'll have a really good break. I'm going to celebrate my mom's 60th birthday with her. Which freaks me out. How can I have a mom who's 60? I'm not prepared to have my parents grow old and die. And too often I dwell on it too much and then can't sleep. I digress. I'm going to try to start keeping a gratitude journal. Because I feel that my spirit could use it. Maybe I'll share some of that here.

In any case, you should go buy the new Sara Groves album, and if you can, you should get the extra downloads. Also, if you haven't yet, you should see Up. I cried a little. My favorite line, "I hid under the porch because I love you."

And I'm not going to try to write some conclusion to wrap this all up.

Getting ready for the reception

Me, Christa, and our honorary sister, Leslie, getting ready for Christa and Wes' wedding reception/shower.



It's a little less nerve-wracking the second time around.

July recap

July was kind of a mixed bag. By the first week of being home, I was so bored I wanted to cry. So we started trying to fill our time. We cleaned every room top to bottom and rearranged some things. Put together a new book case and shoe rack for some of our excess stuff. Then we started a diet and we tried out two different fitness gyms (I think we might try another one next week). Michael was the dean on duty in the boys dorm for two different weekends. Then last week his sister came to visit for a couple of days. We went to New York and shopped, tried for the Wicked lottery. There must have been at least 400 people there. We did not get tickets. We did have some amazing Thai food down in the China Town/Little Italy area. They had some fantastic vegetarian duck. We also went to Philadelphia and did some shopping at the King of Prussia Mall, the largest mall east of the Mississippi. We stayed the night last Wednesday, took Amanda to the airport at 6:00, then drove to Atlanta.

We spent Friday and Saturday with Justin and Shelli. Mostly hanging out, playing games, talking, eating, and a little canoeing. Then we exchanged our Loser's trophy. (Michael and I are the most recent losers.)

Late Saturday night/early Sunday morning I drove to Nashville, then Michael kept driving to Louisville. I hung out with the family while Michael was in rehearsal for his longtime friend Joe's wedding. On Tuesday my sister woke me up to tell me that Minnie, our family dog for the last 16 years, was sick. For the second time in three weeks. She wasn't moving and wouldn't eat. We decided it was time to say goodbye. Christa, my mom and I went to the vet and said our goodbyes. The vet and the assistant were really kind and she was gone in just a few seconds. We buried her in the backyard during a very fitting rainstorm.

Tuesday night I got myself up to Louisville, and Wednesday evening was the wedding. It was lovely. And after the wedding we drove back home. We got here about 9:00 this morning and slept until 3:00. Now we're relaxing a little until I go on duty as the girl's dean for the weekend. And next Tuesday we start pre-session meetings. So that's pretty much the summer. It's been good.

Wedding weekend

Siblings

Christa, Michael and Kirk at the rehearsal

On the way to the rehearsal dinner at the Spaghetti Factory

Old friends

SIsters

Good times

Sister-in-law Rahel and Grandma Jeanne


All ready to go

Gorgeous

Beautiful view

Me and mom




Me and Dino

Happy couple

Musicians

Michael performed the ceremony

Post-wedding bliss

We put up all the decorations the morning-this was my job, besides being matron of honor.

We made about 1,000 cranes

Best buds


And they're off

Short update

The last month has been a whirlwind of activity. This week I'm catching up on my sleep and reading.
Some things that happened:

Adventures in crepe making
Finals and all that grading
Survived graduation as a senior sponsor. Wished that some of our students didn't survive.
Three years of teaching under my belt. How did that happen?
Signed my contract for next year.
BMA hired a new principal (two years in a row... hopefully we won't have to do this again next year.)
Got myself down to Tennessee
Threw Christa a bridal shower
Christa and Wes got married! (it was beautiful)
Got my computer keyboard fixed! (it only took 8 months)

Coming soon:

Post-wedding reception for Christa and Wes
Michael gets Lasik
We go to Mexico!

A peek at last year

Here are some random pictures from last year, just thought I'd put them up for fun and to remember the good times.

Me and Leslie at Cheekwood Botanical Gardens (Christa's future wedding site) from last July when we were both home for a bit.


Also at Cheekwood, my mom and Dino.


Justin and Shelli with some wonderful crepes we ate in D.C.


Justin and Shelli at the Jefferson Memorial.


Me and Michael near the Capitol Building.


In October we played card games by the lake near Shelli's building during Phillip and Crystal's wedding weekend.


Also by the lake.


At the wedding.


After Christa found "the dress" we got freshly made popsickles at this little place near downtown Nashville where they make the popsickles fresh every day. Yum.


Pounce loved the Christmas tree very much.


All the kids.


On Sabbath of our Gatlinburg Christmas. It was beautiful up in the mountains.


The church in Cade's Cove where we sang lots of Christmas hymns. Great acustics